President calls for health insurance tax deduction

LeslieWines

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - President Bush Saturday called for a reform of the tax code to create a standard tax deduction for all Americans with health insurance.

The reform would end a disparity that forces persons who pay for their own insurance to pay more taxes than those who are insured through their jobs, he said.

"Today, the tax code unfairly penalizes people who do not get health insurance through their job," Bush said in his weekly ratio address. "If you buy health insurance on your own, you pay much more after taxes than if you get it through your job." Read the address.

"I proposed to end this unfair bias in the tax code by creating a standard tax deduction for every American who has health insurance," Bush said.

Bush said that, for example, every family that has health insurance could get a $15,000 deduction on their taxes. Such a deduction could also apply to payroll taxes, so that even those who pay no income taxes would benefit.

"Americans deserve a level playing field," he said." If you're self-employed, a farmer, a rancher, or an employee at a small business who buys health insurance on your own, you should get the same tax advantage as those who get their health insurance through their job at a big business."

The president said that health care costs are rising twice as fast as wages, making it difficult for working families to afford coverage.

"These rising costs also make it harder for small businesses to offer health coverage to their employees," he said. "We must address these rising costs so that more Americans can afford basic private health insurance."

Bush said he has been speaking with citizens about health care reform and next week will visit a Tennessee to speak with people who do not have access to basic affordable health insurance.

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